THE WALKING DEAD VOL. I #1.

OCTOBER 2003. FIRST PRINTING. PUBLISHED BY IMAGE COMICS. OFFICE

OF PUBLICATION: 1071 N. BATAVIA ST., SUITE A, ORANGE, CA 92867.
IMAGE AND ITS LOGOS ARE AND 2003, IMAGE COMICS, INC. ALL
RIGHTS RESERVED. THE WALKING DEAD, ITS LOGOS AND ALL RELATED
CHARACTERS ARE AND 2003, ROBERT KIRKMAN. ALL RIGHTS
RESERVED. THE CHARACTERS AND EVENTS PRESENTED IN THIS PUBLICATION
ARE FICTIONAL. ANY SIMILARITIES TO EVENTS OR PERSONS LIVING OR DEAD
IS PURELY COINCIDENTAL. WITH THE EXCEPTION OF ARTWORK USED FOR
REVIEW PURPOSES, NO PORTION OF THIS PUBLICATION MAY BE REPRODUCED
BY ANY MEANS WITHOUT THE EXPRESSED WRITTEN PERMISSION
OF THE COPYRIGHT HOLDER. PRINTED IN USA.

Im not trying to scare anybody. If that

somehow happens as a result of reading this
comic thats great, but really... thats not what this book is about.
What you now hold in your hands is the most serious piece of work
Ive done so far in my career. Im the guy that created Battle Pope; I
hope you guys realize what a stretch this is for me. Its really not that
hard to believe when you realize that Im delving into subject matter
that is so utterly serious and dramatic...
Zombies.
To me, the best zombie movies arent the splatter fests of gore and
violence with goofy characters and tongue in cheek antics. Good zombie movies show us how messed up we are, they make us question our
station in society... and our societys station in the world. They show
us gore and violence and all that cool stuff too... but theres always an
undercurrent of social commentary and thoughtfulness. Thats what
makes the Romero films so great.
With The Walking Dead I want to explore how people deal with extreme
situations and how these events CHANGE them. Im in this for the long
haul, and Im pretty sure Tony is too. You guys are going to get to see
Rick change and mature to the point that when you look back on this
issue you wont even recognize him. I hope you guys are looking forward
to a sprawling epic, because thats the idea with this one.
So, if anything scares you... great, but this is NOT a horror book. I like
the term survivalist adventure. I think that one works well with what
were trying to do. This book is more about watching Rick survive than it
is about watching zombies pop around the corner and scare you. I hope
thats what you guys are into.
All story commentary aside, at the very least, even if you hate the thing...
youve got to admit... it at least looks good. Ive been working with Tony
Moore for as long as I can remember. Ive SEEN Tonys work, I KNOW
Tonys work, and Ive got to say... just in case you didnt notice... Tony really
pulled out all the stops one this one. I can really tell that he shares my
immense love for the subject matter. This book is really a thing of beauty. I
couldnt be more pleased with how its turning out. I hope you all agree.
So let us know, tell us what you liked, tell us what you didnt like. Send
praise, gripes, whatever... call us names if you want... but let us know what
you think of what were doing. The needed info is somewhere on this page
Im sure, so theres really no excuse. Itll give you something to do while you
wait for the second issue, but I promise... it wont be more than a month.
-Robert Kirkman

TO BE CONTINUED IN NOVEMBER
IN

#1